In communities from Niagara Falls to the east end of Long Island, there are things every New Yorker would love to see changed or improved.

One Central New York locale that has aggressively partnered with the state hopes to be a model for others.

It’s a busy time for the city of Oswego, and there’s a real push to build up the coastal destination. New York Secretary of State Robert Rodriguez has been an avid supporter, especially seeing as the "port city" was the first to receive special downtown revitalization funding in 2016.

"We never would have been able to do all of these improvements just on the city budget alone," Oswego Mayor Billy Barlow said. "So we had to go out and get this funding from the state."

"It has really been one of the models for downtown revitalization in our entire program," Rodriguez said. "We've done 59 of these since, but this is one of the few where all 12 of the projects that were selected by the advisory group are actually coming to fruition."

With a focus on economic development initiatives, there’s been a healthy mix of upgrades.

On Thursday, Barlow and Rodriguez toured three of the Downtown Revitalization Initiative-funded projects — affordable housing on both the east and west side of the canal, and a much-anticipated indoor water park to promote tourism throughout the year.

Between the two affordable housing locations, only one of the 80 units has yet to be rented. There's a healthy waiting list with other housing projects in the works.

"What you do need to have is a concentration of businesses," Rodriguez said. "Maybe it's a park, maybe it's transit options. Maybe it's the ability to support businesses with housing. It really is the combination of all of those things that makes for a successful downtown revitalization."

While Rodriguez had an opportunity to take in some of what makes the port city special, Barlow argued it's just a fraction of what they've put in to ensure they can bring more people into Oswego.

"Governor Hochul's administration has been great," Barlow said. "The secretary has been a big supporter of Oswego. So, it's great to finally be able to show them what the $10 million DRI investment has done to Oswego. It's truly transformed the community."

There are now more opportunities that bring people closer to their work, promote local spending and beautify areas that were eyesores rather than attractions.

Barlow credits legwork and taking advantage of every possible fiscal opportunity.

"It takes a ton of work from everybody at every level of government," Barlow said. "Getting the grant really is the easiest part in some cases. Going back to when I took office in 2016, we've secured almost $50 million in grant funding, most of which was from New York state."

Barlow compared that to the growing number of reasons for people to live in, work in or regularly visit Oswego.

"All of these projects have helped to transform our waterfront and finally allow a suite to capitalize," Barlow said.

He said through an impressive number of grants and investments, the city has been able to not only add local services and attractions, but also decrease taxes.

Even with the pandemic throwing a wrench into some plans, patience and tenacity have paid off. Time will tell if the investments continue to pay off.

"The true return on these projects we haven't even realized yet because COVID kind of delayed things for a few years in terms of people traveling and getting out about again," Barlow said. "So I think this summer will really be the good gauge for us to see just how big of an impact these projects have had."